Into the Darkness
by Akane81
Summary: Seiji gives her an ultimatum. If she cleans his friends house, he'll teach her how to protect herself. What she didn't know is that there was so much more going on than simply cleaning a house. What happens when Ryo's worst nightmare comes to life? He wishes the maid would leave him to his misery! Takes place after All's Fair in Love and War. RyoxOC
1. Chapter 1

Laina looked around her as people stared at the bruises forming on her face. She had to get away. The bus came to her stop and she quickly made her way off. She walked to the apartment building and pushed open the door. People kept staring at her as she walked to the stairway. Maybe it was the bruises, or it might be the blood dripping in her eye. She wiped the blood away again and continued up another flight of stairs. When she reached the fourth floor she walked down the empty corridor, thankful to be away from the questioning looks of strangers.

She lightly knocked on the door to the apartment, seeing the blood stained sleeve. Startled at the sight she pulled her arm behind her back and glanced around the corridor. She knocked again, louder this time. She heard footsteps in the apartment and someone grumbled. The door opened a little and a guy with rumpled light brown hair peered through. His green eyes widened at the sight of her and he opened the door to let her in. Laina wiped her brow one more time.

"You might need stitches this time," he muttered as he closed the door. He walked to the kitchen and made a pot of coffee. Laina just sat at the counter, her eyes stinging from unshed tears.

"Why do you do this? I'm not always going to take you in," he said turning to her and looking at her sadly.

"I'm not going back this time," she said brushing her dark blonde hair behind her ear.

"You say that every time," he said giving her a sigh, "And every time he finds you, you just give in and go back and then this happens again."

"I won't do it this time. This time I'll learn to fight him," she said defiantly lifting her chin.

Her brother Matt, shrugged, "Whatever you say, sis."

"I'll try to stay out of your hair," she said, looking down at her hands.

"He's going to know you're here," he said getting a mug and filling it with the fresh coffee and handing it to her, "It's the only place to look. He already scared off your friends."

"I know. I'm going to the dojo around the corner to see if I can get into a defense class or something tomorrow after work," she said taking the warm cup and putting sugar and milk in it.

"Let me know if you need money for the class. I'm sure he took your paychecks again. How else is he going to get his liquor," Matt said pouring another cup of coffee for himself, "Do you want me to take you to get stitches?"

"No, it's not that bad," she said taking a napkin and pressing it against the open cut. Matt shook his head.

"Promise me you won't go back to him. I hate seeing you like this," he said with a frown.

"I know. I promise I won't. He went too far this time," she said staring at her shaking hands and willing them to stop. He scared her, but she would always go back to him when he threatened to kill her brother. This time she would kill him first. She realized as he pummeled her and she tried to fight him off, that she had two choices; fight back or die. That was when she rolled out from under him and grabbed the stool. She hit him with it and watched him fall onto the broken old couch with a thud. Matt's hand waved in front of her face and she jumped back.

"Hello, earth to Laina," he said, "Go clean up and get some sleep."

She watched as he locked the door and went back to his bedroom. She picked up the mug and went to the bathroom. The tears that had been threatening to fall all day suddenly came out in a river. She couldn't seem to stop them from falling down her bruised cheeks. She would have a black eye in the morning. She grabbed a washcloth and ran it under warm water before wiping away the blood. She bandaged up the cut above her brow and changed into one of Matt's old outfits.

As she stepped out of the bathroom she took the blanket from the back of the couch and pulled it over her. It was a quilt that their mother made many years before. The weight of it covering her gave her a safe feeling. She was home, and she drifted off to a slumber full of nightmares. By morning she was hurting in places she didn't know existed. The bright light of the sun shone into the window of the living room. Her eyes squinted as she turned to look at the clock above the tv. It was covered by a note.

Her body protested as she worked her way off the couch.

_Tried to wake you. Called you out sick instead. Go to the dojo and find out about any defense class, or I'll kill him for ya._

She smiled at the note her brother left and pulled it forward. The clock said it was early afternoon. Her jaw would have dropped if it hadn't hurt so bad. Her eyes teared up and she tenderly touched the offending area. With a sigh she took some medicine and ate before walking out of the apartment. Her skin crawled with the feeling of eyes on her as she slid on a pair of her brothers sunglasses and made her way to the dojo. There were classes in session as some kids swung wooden swords straight up and down. She waited in the doorway and watched the class. It wasn't exactly what she had in mind of a dojo. She was hoping it was more of a karate type, not a sword swinging type.

The blonde man called out instructions and the class followed his direction. She didn't want to interrupt so she rested her back on the door jamb and waited patiently. He knew she was there, she could see his stern gaze touching her briefly between calling out orders. She could feel her heart race and debated on turning to leave, but the pain in her cheeks told her this was something she had to do. It was her life that was at stake and she wasn't going down without a fight. Determination raged through her as she waited. The sound of footsteps behind her made her turn.

A woman with brown hair walked up, watching her curiously. She held a small child in her arms, who smiled innocently at her.

"Can I help you?" the woman asked.

Laina stepped out of the doorway, towards the woman, "Yeah, my name is Laina. I'm looking for a class for women?"

The woman smiled in relief and Laina smiled back.

"I told him he should offer a class for women," she said, "They haven't started a class yet, but I'll let him know that you are interested."

Laina's smile faded and she looked down, "Do you think he would be willing to teach me privately then? Not that I want time alone with him, it's just that… I really need to learn."

She looked at her curiously, "Well he is really busy, but it wouldn't hurt to ask."

The kids started to leave the room and the blonde man stepped out. He walked up to the brown haired woman and planted a kiss on her lips. Then he touched the child's cheek.

"Seiji, this woman is looking to learn how to fight. Her name is Laina," the brunette said.

"Anna, there just aren't enough women who want to learn Kendo," Seiji said frowning.

"Well she wants to know if you'll take her on for private lessons. I'll do it with her," Anna said smiling at him. He sighed and looked at the mysterious woman.

"Why do you want to learn?" he asked, his eyes looking tired.

"I need to learn how to defend myself. This is the closest dojo to my brother's apartment," Laina answered.

"Those bruises?" Anna asked, frowning.

"My ex-boyfriend," Laina whispered, "I'm done with him and I need to learn how to defend myself or fight back."

Anna looked pleadingly to Seiji.

"Look, I have little to no free time. With little Mason here, classes, and Ryo… I just can't do it," Seiji said looking at Anna.

She looked thoughtful for a moment and looked at Laina, "How about a trade? She goes to help out Ryo on her days off and you teach her to fight."

"Anna, I can't just pawn Ryo off on someone. He's one of my best friends. Not to mention he would be hurt," Seiji said.

"She'll just go to clean his place up. You'll still go to visit him. We'll visit…," Anna said.

"Really? I think he'd like it if you and Mason came," he looked down thoughtfully.

"I wouldn't mind visiting if the house was a little less dangerous and filthy," Anna said, "I'm too afraid Mason will get sick."

Seiji looked at Laina, "Would you be willing to do that?"

"Yeah, I guess. I can clean a house, and I am a nurse," she said with a shrug.

"Deal," Seiji said, "I'll give you his address. What days do you have off?"

"Monday and Tuesday, usually," Laina replied.

"Okay, you go there tomorrow and clean his place up for him. I'll teach you for an hour on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday nights at like seven?" Seiji asked.

Laina smiled and nodded her head. It sounded like a good deal to her, but then she wondered why this Ryo needed help. Maybe he was naturally a dirty person. She took the address from him and he seemed relieved.


	2. What did I get myself into

Laina was excited to get to work. She pulled up to the address and found a log cabin. All she had to do was clean this place up and she would learn to fight for free. Seiji even gave her money for cleaning supplies. She didn't know what was already there so she bought everything she might need to clean a house from top to bottom.

The log cabin was farther away from the city than she thought, but it was in a nice secluded area. Trees were all around and there were no car horns or buses. She took a deep breath and added fresh air to the list of things she liked about this place. She grabbed the supplies and walked up the steps to find her shoes making a sticking noise. She frowned and stepped a couple more times to check, definitely sticky. Making a mental note to mop the front porch, she knocked on the wooden door.

"Just come in," someone grumbled from inside. Laina took a deep breath and turned the knob. What she wasn't expecting was the smell that hit her. She nearly gagged as she stepped into the pitch black room. Her shoes crunched on the ground and she seriously thought she made a mistake on this deal, she got screwed. Her hand searched the wall for a light switch and she found it.

When she turned around and looked at the living room her shoulders drooped. At least there wasn't anything dead… that she could see. However broken glass was everywhere, as well as puddles, blood, and she wasn't sure, but possibly vomit. The smell of stale beer and other things was the worst. She went to the windows and pulled the blinds back. Then she opened the windows, feeling the cool breeze and fresh air rush in. She took a deep breath before turning back to the mess of a living room.

"Hey, close those!" a man shouted. She figured he had to be Ryo.

"I told you guys to keep them shut!"

"I'm sorry, but I seriously can't even be in this room with that disgusting smell," she said, "You'll just have to deal with it while I clean."

He jumped on the couch sitting straight up, "Who the hell are you?"

"My name is Laina. Did Seiji call you?" she asked as she walked to the kitchen.

"No, why are you here? Get out," he said, still not turning to her. She was actually glad he didn't. She was afraid the bruises and swelling would freak him out.

Flipping on the light switch she groaned. The kitchen was even worse, with old milk and cereal pasted to the floor, plastic bowls in the sink and all over the counter, including some on the floor.

"I told you to go," he said. She turned and looked at the culprit for this cesspit of a house. How could one person be this messy and disgusting? He stood up next to the couch and was looking at the wall, his eyes unfocused, but she could swear she had seen his face before. She couldn't quite picture it. His hair was black and slightly long. His skin was tan and she couldn't figure out how he could have a six pack when he lived off of cereal and beer. (at least that was all she could see around) He wore only a pair of jeans as he stood there clenching and unclenching his fists.

"Must have a high metabolism," she mumbled.

"What?" he asked the wall. It dawned on her then, why he needed help. He couldn't see. He was blind, but then how did she know him? She was pretty sure she hadn't met any blind guys.

"Nothing… I'm just here to clean up your house. I made a deal with Date Seiji. I clean your house he teaches me to fight," she replied.

"Well, Seiji didn't ask my permission. So get out!" he growled.

"You know your stepping on glass?" she asked looking at his bare feet.

"I don't care!" he shouted.

"Listen, why don't you go take a shower, and I'll get this floor cleaned so you don't have to hurt your feet on the glass," Laina said picking the broom out of the bags she carried. She started sweeping up the glass from around him. He reached out and grabbed her arm.

"I said get out," he said with his jaw clenched. He raised an arm, pointing in the direction of the door.

"Look, Ryo, I really need this, okay," she said pleadingly, "You don't understand how badly I need this, so please… just let me do my job."

"Whatever," he said, letting go of her arm and stepping into the pile of glass she had just swept. He didn't even cringe as the glass crunched under his feet, but Laina did. Then he walked up the stairs leaving glass behind. She frowned and made a note to sweep and mop the stairs, too. She swept up the glass from the floor when she heard him call out. Seriously debating not answering she swept a little more.

"Hey girl!" he shouted again. Laina looked up and blushed. He stood at the banister of the upstairs completely naked. She quickly looked away.

"Laina," she said sweeping some more.

"Girl, get up here and turn on the shower," he said with his jaw clenched. The pity she felt before melted away at his spiteful tone. Suppressing the urge to tell him where to shove it, she walked up the stairs and was greeted with the bathroom. Dirty clothes were everywhere and there wasn't a clean towel in sight.

"When your friends come, do they clean at all?" she asked, turning to him.

"Well I yell at them for doing it, but yes, they do," Ryo replied.

"Do you even have a clean towel?" she asked. He shrugged.

"Of course," she said turning the water on, and purposely making it a little cold. Hey, she had to get him back somehow. She was sure he could turn the water on himself, blind or not. She swooped down and grabbed all the dirty clothes and took them down, opening doors to find the laundry room. When she opened the dryer there were some towels, jeans, and boxers. She grabbed them and went back up to the bathroom. He was in the water so she left them on the toilet for him, with the towel on top. With a quick sweep she pulled the dirty clothes from the rooms and sorted them out. Then she went back to sweeping the house.

She cringed as she turned on the hot water and filled up the mop bucket. Listening for a yell, she was surprised to not hear any. Her arms started hurting as she scrubbed the floor and mopped. Then she started scraping the hardened cereal from the kitchen floor and counters. Footsteps alerted her that he was done and she ran out of the kitchen to check the floor. Thankfully it was dry. He walked to what must be his bedroom and yelled again.

"Girl! What did you do to my room?" he shouted.

"My name is Laina and I'm just cleaning the sheets," she called back.

"You're robbing me! That's what you're doing!" he shouted.

With a sigh she started the laundry and went back to cleaning. After a few more hours she was exhausted, her arms hurt so bad. The front door opened and a man froze.

"Ryo?" he called. His voice was sweet with an accent, the kind of voice that drew you to it. Laina stepped out of the laundry room to see who it was.

"I think he's asleep," she said softly, "I'm Laina."

"Shin," he replied looking at her curiously.

She looked him over. His reddish-brown hair and blue-green eyes were very appealing. Feeling like she had to explain herself she added, "Seiji asked me to come clean the house?"

"Oh," he said as understanding crept over him, "And he gave you a nice shiner for it?"

Laina laughed having forgotten the bruises, "No, Seiji didn't hit me. It was someone else."

Shin nodded without saying anything and carried bags of food in. He froze again when he got to the kitchen. The dishwasher rumbled as it cleaned the bowls she had put in it. He looked impressed as he set the bags on the counter.

"How did you get the cereal off?" he asked in a whisper.

She smiled and held up a paint scraper, "I found it outside when I cleaned the porch."

Shin laughed and started putting the food away. Laina felt compelled to help. The slap of bare feet on the freshly cleaned hardwood floor came to the doorway.

"Shin she's robbing me! She's stealing glass and sheets!" Ryo complained. Laina looked at Shin and rolled her eyes.

Shin laughed, "Why would she steal broken glass and old cereal from your floors? The house looks great by the way."

Laina decided she liked Shin. He had a nice laugh and he was looking more attractive the more he talked.

"I told her to leave but she isn't listening," Ryo grumbled.

"Would you like to stay for dinner?" Shin asked looking at Laina.

"No, she doesn't want to stay for dinner," Ryo said crossing his arms. Laina looked at him and decided she bothered him enough.

"No thanks, I actually have to get back home. It was nice meeting you though, Shin," Laina replied. Shin nodded and smiled at her.

"So will you be back?" Shin asked casually.

"Next Monday," she replied nodding and pushing away from the counter. She touched Ryo's arm as she passed him.

"Bye, don't come back," he called.

"See you next week," she answered and heard him groan before she left the house. She wasn't able to get everything done but he couldn't cause too much of a mess in just one week, right?


	3. Stirring up trouble

Wrong! The next Monday she didn't even bother knocking and opened the door. Apparently that's what his friends did. Her shoes crunched against more broken glass and she was seriously getting angry with whoever supplies him with beer. With her muscles protesting from the last cleaning and the recent training with the Date's she was hoping it would be a little cleaner but the same smells assaulted her nose. Now she knew why Seiji was upset and asked her if she had actually shown up when he called the night before. Storming to the windows she pulled the blinds open and opened the window loud slam.

"Go away," Ryo shouted from the couch.

Without saying a word she started sweeping up the glass. He lay on the couch with his arms crossed over his chest. At the moment she was a little pissed off. She worked so hard to clean this place the week before and it was back to square one in a week. Glaring at his relaxed form, she wondered if he did it on purpose. Obviously he didn't like her being there.

"Why do you need to clean my house anyway?" he grumbled hearing her sweeping the floor.

"I need to learn to fight so that I can protect the people I love," she said quietly.

"From what? Seriously, just go away and leave me alone," Ryo said turning on his side.

Laina seriously thought about kicking him, but figured you shouldn't kick a man when he's down. With a sigh she swept up the gross cereal and glass. While mopping the floor she thought about how it would feel to lose your sight and have to depend on people. She looked at Ryo's sleeping form and realized he was probably depressed because he felt useless. Then she realized she had mopped herself into a corner in the living room. Feeling angry with herself for being distracted she took off her shoes and socks and tiptoed to the nearest chair.

Sitting quietly she took a good look around the room. There were pictures of him smiling at weddings, quite a few of him with four other guys, a soccer team photo, and him with a white tiger. She wondered if he had any family, or if it was just his friends. Matt was her only family and she worried about him. Looking over to the couch she watched his back move with each breath. She could tell he was having a hard time dealing with his loss of sight. Maybe she could talk him, get him to sympathize with her, and talk him out of breaking more bottles… a little trust can go a long way.

"My ex-boyfriend," she said quietly, wrapping her arms around her legs and resting her chin on her knees. He moved to his back.

"What?" he asked turning his head in her direction.

"You asked what I needed to protect my brother from. The answer is my ex-boyfriend," Laina said.

"Shouldn't it be the other way around?" Ryo asked, "Shouldn't he be the one protecting you from your ex?"

"There is something wrong with the guy, my ex that is. He threatens to kill my brother, and my brother's all I have," Laina said blinking back tears.

"That's why you want to learn? Did the guy, your ex… did he hit you or something?" Ryo asked.

She took a deep breath and quietly said, "Often, but I'm done with it. I'm tired of worrying if this is the time he kills me. I want to live."

Ryo solemnly nodded his head.

"I'm tired of the glass too, by the way," she said raising an eyebrow, "Seiji wants to bring his son when he visits, but can't if you keep throwing glass around. And yes I know you are throwing the bottles."

"I am not. I accidentally drop them and they explode. I'm blind you know," Ryo said smirking.

"You ass," she said shaking her head and he proceeded to laugh.

"You have four other senses, you should try using them sometime," Laina said. Ryo touched the floor.

"Like I know the only reason you're talking to me is because you mopped yourself into a chair?" he asked with a smirk. She threw the pillow from her chair at him, hitting him in the stomach and he burst out in laughter.

"Ha, ha," she said sarcastically, which only made him laugh more.

"You should take pity on a poor blind man," he said when he finished laughing, "Deal with the glass."

"I will take no pity on you, Ryo," she said shaking her head, "You're a grown ass man. Suck it up or I will threaten to cut the balls off of your beer supplier."

"Now who's being the ass?" Ryo asked raising his eyebrows. Laina laughed as he threw the pillow back at her.

After a moment of silence Laina said, "You're not useless, you know? You can still do things, if you just try."

"Like what?" Ryo asked.

"How about turning the water on in the shower? I really don't need to see your ass naked again," she replied. The way Ryo smiled she knew he had been playing her the last time she was there. He was probably just trying to get rid of her.

"Well I figure you should get some enjoyment out of my predicament," he said cockily and put his hands behind his head, giving her a full luscious view of his tan, ripped torso. She thought about what it would be like to scrape her fingers down his abs.

Laina laughed and blushed at the same time. He sure thought highly of himself, although with his body she was sure he was allowed to.

"Well I wouldn't want to take advantage of a poor blind man," she replied, throwing his words back at him.

"You know you want to," he said giving her a smirk. And she wanted to, she really did, but now wasn't exactly the time to get together with someone else. She still had her ex to worry about… but he was gorgeous. She looked at his dazzling blue eyes and wanted to run her fingers through his silky black hair. What would he feel like? Closing her eyes she suppressed a moan as she imagined feeling the warmth of his tan skin. She could smell his soap and shampoo and shivered. Shaking her head she opened her eyes, knowing she had to get him off that topic.

"What do I smell like to you?" she asked curiously. His eyebrow furrowed like he hadn't thought about it. He took in a breath through his nose.

"Summer, like strawberries and flowers," Ryo replied. Laina watched him curiously. If anyone saw her she knew she would look like a nutcase, but she smelled her deodorant. It was kind of flowery… but where did the strawberry come from? Her soap wasn't strawberry? Her shampoo was! That was where the strawberry came from. She smelled the strands from her ponytail, but couldn't smell it. Without thinking she got up and jumped over to his couch to avoid the wet floor. He jolted as she straddled him and put her hair down by his face.

"Is it my hair? Does it smell good? I can never really smell the shampoo and conditioner in it," she said, feeling his warm breath on her hair. He let out a chuckle as his hand gently touched her hair, letting the silky tresses slide through his fingers.

"Yeah, I think it's your hair. What color is it?" Ryo asked.

Laina sat up and smiled, "Blonde."

"So you have blonde hair. What color are your eyes?" he asked as his hand fell to her bare thigh. She felt a spark of heat that pooled in her lower abdomen.

"Green," she replied, unsure of what to do. Part of her said to get up, but part of her wanted to live dangerously. His hand rubbed her upper thigh. Looking at his lips she wondered if they were as soft as they looked. This was bad. She shouldn't think of him in that way, right? Just as she was about to get up Ryo's hands gripped her thighs, holding her down. She looked at him quizzically when the door opened and Shin stepped in. He didn't notice at first, but then his eyes locked with hers. Oh Shit, he did it again.

"Watch out," she said as he stepped in and slid, landing on his rear.

"The floor's wet," she said a little too late.

"Oh, good, Shin's here. Do you see her tackling me and forcing me to smell her hair?" Ryo asked laughing. Slightly embarrassed, because technically that is what she did, all Laina could do was laugh. Ryo was good at getting her in trouble. She would have to remember how tricky he was. Shoving his hands away she got up and padded to Shin.

"I was just trying to get him to know when I'm here by how I smell," Laina said helping the poor red-head up.

Shin smiled, "Using his other senses… Brilliant."

She laughed a little at his use of the word brilliant. It was cute.

"Do you need help with the groceries?" she asked, taking a bag from him.

"Are you staying for dinner? I brought stuff to make sandwiches for lunch, as well," Shin said smiling as he looked into her eyes. Then he moved towards the kitchen.

"Sure. I don't have any plans for dinner. I'd love to stay," Laina said following him to the kitchen. She heard a groan from the couch.

"Lovely," Shin said and then added, "Just ignore the grump in there."

"I heard that," Ryo said getting up and walking to the kitchen table. He plopped down into a chair and drummed his fingers on the table. Laina took a butter knife and put it in Ryo's hand. She put the bread and lunch meat in front of him.

"What am I doing with a knife?" Ryo asked.

"Making me a sandwich," Laina replied, "I have to go finish cleaning your mess."

Ryo pointed the knife in her direction, "Make your own sandwich."

"I can make it for you," Shin said sweetly.

"No, that's okay. Ryo can. He needs to learn anyway. I'm starting to hate cereal… and beer," Laina replied leaving the room.


	4. Learning to fight

She did more laundry and cleaned his bathroom. When she walked back into the kitchen Ryo was eating a sandwich with mayonnaise plopping out of it. Another one was smashed onto a plate. She was sure he smashed it on purpose, but was kind of happy he still did it. Honestly she expected him to not make one at all. He was trying, that was all that mattered. As the mayo fell from his sandwich to the plate she cringed.

"I can make you another sandwich," Shin said at the look on her face.

"That's okay, I'll eat it," she said forcing a smile at Shin. She sat down next to Ryo and shook the mayo off a little.

"Something wrong?" Ryo asked taking another bite.

"No, not at all. Thank you for making me such a wonderful sandwich, I appreciate it," she replied taking a bite out of it. Shin winced as the mayo fell to the plate. She squeezed some more mayo out, trying to do it so Ryo didn't hear.

"I hate you," Ryo said taking another bite, mayonnaise running down his chin.

"I love you, too," she replied sarcastically, with a smile and Shin laughed.

"I'm still making dinner, right?" Shin said jokingly, "You couldn't pay me to eat that."

Laina stifled a laugh. Ryo threw his sandwich to the floor, and then tossed his plate down with it.

"Hey! I just cleaned that," Laina said frowning. Luckily the plate didn't break.

"Well you shouldn't have made me make that disgusting thing!" Ryo yelled. He felt for the wall and then punched it, his hand breaking the wood. Shin looked at him with pity and Laina winced.

"Are you happy now? You broke the wall. What did it do to you?" Laina asked sitting back, "Pick up your plate."

"You pick it up! That's your job," Ryo said, his brow furrowed in anger.

"Listen Ryo," she said softly, "I can see that you're mad. I don't know how you lost your sight, but you are going to have to learn to live with it eventually. Your friends have put up with you moping for months. It's time to pick yourself up off the floor and learn to do things differently. You obviously want to be more independent. What's stopping you?"

A sigh escaped him as he walked over and felt along the floor for the plate. He put the sandwich back on it and set it on the counter.

"I was hit in the head with a soccer ball," he replied, "Of all things. I _loved_ soccer. I could watch it over and over again. Now I can't see the grass, or the players running down the field. I'm worthless to my team, worthless to my friends, worthless to everyone."

Laina glanced at Shin. He put his sandwich down and bit his bottom lip. His blue-green eyes turned to her and she looked back at Ryo. It was obvious they tell him he's not worthless, but Ryo couldn't get it through his thick skull that he can still do things for himself.

"Ry-," Shin said in his sweet voice.

"Don't even start! We all know it's true! I'm as good as dead without my sight," Ryo said clenching his jaw.

"No you're not," Laina replied.

"You don't understand. Why do you care, anyway? You're not my friend. All you care about is learning to fight, and making me keep my house clean so you don't have to do as much work. Shin can teach you to fight," he said turning angrily and leaving. Laina looked guiltily at Shin.

Shin shrugged pushing his sandwich aside and said, "Let's go outside, then. I could use a break."

Nodding, she followed Shin out, her mind still mulling over what Ryo said. Hit with a soccer ball… Then it flashed through her mind where she knew him from. It happened months ago. The incident was all over the news. His opponent was mad and kicked a ball in his direction when he was talking to a reporter, but it wasn't the hit that caused it. It was a tumor they found when they x-rayed him. He lost his sight when they removed it. She froze on the porch. He was that famous soccer player. Her ex-boyfriend loved his team and was angry when it happened. She absently ran a finger over the scar on her arm. Her ex was so mad he punched through the wall and then sliced her with the knife she was using to make their dinner. She had fifteen stitches that day.

"You okay?" Shin asked. Laina blinked a few times and then nodded.

"He was that great soccer player… Sanada, right?" she asked. Shin smiled sadly and nodded. He pulled his t-shirt off over his head and put it on the banister. Now… that should be illegal. He should not be allowed to have a sweet/sexy voice, good looks, kindness, and the body of a Greek God. It was a good thing she wasn't looking for a relationship. She looked at his muscled back and was surprised to see a tattoo. He had "Mouri" written elegantly across his back. It was actually pretty sexy on him.

He turned to her looking expectantly. Laina hopped down the steps and ran over to join him, feeling a bit like a gawker.

"Who's Mouri?" she asked. He's gay and that's his boyfriend, right? No one that good looking and nice could be straight and not taken.

"My family name. Shin Mouri," Shin replied giving her a dazzling smile. Damn! If he were gay that would have been a good excuse to not be attracted to him. Wait, maybe he was…

"So… Do you have a girlfriend, Shin?"

Shin shook his head as his eyes gazed into hers. She felt like she could just melt right there.

"Amaya was kind of a girlfriend, but it turns out she was just using me until something better came along," he said.

"What could _possibly_ be better than you?" she blurted out and then slapped her hand over her mouth. Shin laughed and blushed, which only made him look even cuter. Laina quickly looked away and ran her toes through the blades of grass.

"Someone with money, I really know how to pick 'em," Shin replied. Laina nodded, still feeling slightly embarrassed.

"Maybe it's more that you're too nice? Some girls take advantage of nice guys," Laina said. He looked up at her from under his hair and she really felt like she was going to melt.

"Do you?" he asked, and she nearly fell to her knees. His eyes moved from her eyes to her lips and she felt herself absentmindedly lick them.

"Uhm… well…," her mind had turned to mush as she gazed at him; his strong arms, muscular abs, gorgeous eyes, and a smile to die for. FOR CORN'S SAKE PUT ON A SHIRT! I can't stop staring! She must have looked like a fish out of water with her mouth opening and closing but nothing coming out.

"Will you stop talking and teach her to fight already!" a grumbling Ryo shouted from the porch, snapping Laina back from her daydream. She looked back and saw Ryo leaning against the banister with a bottle of water in hand.

"Right," Shin said smirking at her and glancing at Ryo. He must have known where her thoughts were, and they were definitely in the gutter. He raised his hands into fists and started teaching her boxing moves. With her muscles pre-sore she had to push herself through this training. Shin took it easy on her, she could tell. His warm hands guiding her arms to the right positions, the closeness and feel of his hands made her want to throw him down in the grass and have her way with him. She shook her head, bringing her concentration back. Her hormones were out of control today. Sex was not going to help her live when Wyatt came after her.

"Good," Shin murmured in her ear as she moved to the right spot. The thought of Wyatt made her work harder in her training. They spent a couple of hours in the sun, practicing moves without a sword. Shin taught her how to knock someone down and she practiced on him.

"That's great," Shin said smiling up at her after she was finally successful. It was doubtful that she could possibly knock him down. He must have gone down on purpose. He put his hands behind his head, reminding her of Ryo earlier. She glanced up to see Ryo sitting on the front porch with an empty water bottle. He looked sad as he sat there with his arms on his knees.

"Are you tired yet?" Shin asked, following her gaze to Ryo.

"Are you kidding? I'm exhausted," she said plopping down next to him.

"Good, it's not just me then," Shin said with a laugh. She liked his laugh. He was pretty easy going.

"Hey Ry, can you get us some water?" Shin asked sweetly. Ryo got up grumbling and went inside.

"He never used to be like that. Ryo's the guy you could always turn to when you needed help. There were times when he was a bit headstrong and would rush into danger, but when it comes down to it he's the best person to talk to," Shin said, "This isn't how he used to be. Give him a break, okay?"

"You're sweet, but he doesn't need a break right now. I may not be his friend, yet, but he'll see that I'm helping him," she said, "He doesn't need to be babied right now, he needs to learn to do things himself."

The door opened and Ryo walked out carrying two bottles of water.

"Throw it here," Laina called out and was surprised when the water bottle came straight at her, "You've got a good arm."

Ryo smiled in response and threw the other bottle in Shin's direction. She couldn't help but stare at him. Shin hadn't said anything… How did he do that?

"Thanks, man," Shin said opening the bottle. He seemed totally unfazed by Ryo's aim. Shin sat up leaning back on one arm and gulped the water down. Laina couldn't help but stare, he should definitely get into modeling. Ryo walked down the stairs and stood in the grass, his faced raised to the sun with his eyes closed. Laina was tempted to walk up to him and put her arms around his waist to see if he was really as warm as he looked, actually she just wanted a hug. She missed hugs, and her brother wasn't the hugging type, at least not with her anymore. He used to, before Wyatt came along. Now Matt was just frustrated with her. Wyatt was definitely not the hugging type.

She took a drink from her water bottle. It was a pretty hot day and although she had on a sports bra, with these models around she was not tempted to take anything off. She would look pathetic around these guys. The training was a great way to lose weight and gain muscle, but she wasn't sure if she would ever be comfortable showing her body to these guys. Maybe Ryo… after all he wouldn't be able to see how inadequate she was.


End file.
